case studies undp: oyster producers' cooperative of cananeia, brazil

7/27/2019 Case Studies UNDP: OYSTER PRODUCERS' COOPERATIVE OF CANANEIA, Brazil

1/14

Equator Initiative Case StudiesLocal sustainable development solutions for people, nature, and resilient communities

Brazil

OYSTER PRODUCERSCOOPERATIVE OF CANANIA

Empowered live

Resilient nation


2/14

UNDP EQUATOR INITIATIVE CASE STUDY SERIES

Local and indigenous communities across the world are advancing innovative sustainable development solutions that wo

or people and or nature. Few publications or case studies tell the ull story o how such initiatives evolve, the breadth

their impacts, or how they change over time. Fewer still have undertaken to tell these stories with community practition

themselves guiding the narrative.

To mark its 10-year anniversary, the Equator Initiative aims to ll this gap. The ollowing case study is one in a growing ser

that details the work o Equator Prize winners vetted and peer-reviewed best practices in community-based environmenconservation and sustainable livelihoods. These cases are intended to inspire the policy dialogue needed to take local succ

to scale, to improve the global knowledge base on local environment and development solutions, and to serve as models

replication. Case studies are best viewed and understood with reerence toThe Power o Local Action: Lessons rom 10 Years

the Equator Prize, a compendium o lessons learned and policy guidance that draws rom the case material.

Click on the map to visit the Equator Initiatives searchable case study database.

EditorsEditor-in-Chie: Joseph Corcoran

Managing Editor: Oliver HughesContributing Editors: Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Erin Lewis, Whitney Wilding

Contributing WritersEdayatu Abieodun Lamptey, Erin Atwell, Toni Blackman, Jonathan Clay, Joseph Corcoran, Larissa Currado, Sarah Gordon, Oliver Hughe

Wen-Juan Jiang, Sonal Kanabar, Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Rachael Lader, Patrick Lee, Erin Lewis, Jona Liebl, Mengning Ma,

Mary McGraw, Gabriele Orlandi, Juliana Quaresma, Peter Schecter, Martin Sommerschuh, Whitney Wilding, Luna Wu

DesignOliver Hughes, Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Amy Korngiebel, Kimberly Koserowski, Erin Lewis, John Mulqueen, Lorena de la Pa

Brandon Payne, Mariajos Satizbal G.

AcknowledgementsThe Equator Initiative acknowledges with gratitude the Oyster Producers Cooperative o Canania, and in particular the guidance a

inputs o Wanda Maldonado. All photo credits courtesy o the Oyster Producers Cooperative o Canania. Maps courtesy o CIA Wo

Factbook and Wikipedia.

Suggested CitationUnited Nations Development Programme. 2012. Oyster Producers Cooperative o Canania, Brazil. Equator Initiative Case Study Ser

New York, NY.
http://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdfhttp://equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_winners&view=casestudysearch&Itemid=858


3/14

PROJECT SUMMARYThe Oyster Producers Cooperative o Canania (Cooperativados Produtos de Ostras de Canania Cooperostra) is acommunity-based organization centered on the MandiraExtractive Reserve in So Paulos Canania estuary lagoon.Launched in the mid-1990s ollowing state-led interventionsaiming at improving the sustainability, viability, andhygienic quality o artisanal oyster harvesting in Mandira,the initiative quickly grew to incorporate harvestingcommunities throughout the Canania estuary.

The cooperatives work has ocused on reconciling oyster

harvesting with the conservation o the regions biologicallydiverse mangrove orests. Innovative processes andtechnologies, including oyster nurseries and a puriyingstation, have been introduced to add value to oysters andenable their harvesting year-round, while the ormationo the cooperative has allowed harvesters to circumventmiddlemen and obtain airer prices or their products.

KEY FACTS

EQUATOR PRIZE WINNER: 2002

FOUNDED: 1997

LOCATION: Canania Estuary, south of So Paulo

BENEFICIARIES: Mandira quilombola community

BIODIVERSITY: Mangrove forests, oyster genetic diversity

3

OYSTER PRODUCERS COOPERATIVE OFCANANIABrazil

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Background and Context 4

Key Activities and Innovations 7

Biodiversity Impacts 10

Socioeconomic Impacts 10

Policy Impacts 11

Sustainability 12

Replication 12

Partners 13


4/14

4

he Oyster Producers Cooperative o Canania (Cooperativa dos

rodutos de Ostras de Canania - Cooperostra) works to promote

he sustainable management o mangrove ecosystems in the

razilian state o So Paulo, with a particular ocus on artisanal oyster

arvesting. The project takes place in the estuary lagoon complex o

Canania, Brazil, one o the most biologically diverse estuaries in the

world and a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site.

ocated south o the city o So Paulo, the total intertidal area

overed by the entire Canania Lagoon estuarine system is about

0 sq. km. Mangroves dominate this intertidal region in Canania:

ed mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) is located along the ringes and

acked by basins dominated by white mangrove (Langunculariaacmosa). Black mangroves (Avicennia schaueriana) also occur

nterspersed in the basin orests.

At the centre o the estuary is the Mandira community, comprising

round 30 amilies totalling approximately 130 people. The

ommunity is a remainder o quilombolas (ormer slaves) and has

ccupied the land since the nineteenth century. Surrounded by a

mosaic o protected areas, including the Jacupiranga State Park and

ederal Zone or Wildlie Protection, the site has long been one o

he most productive areas o the estuary or oyster harvesting.

he community has traditionally relied heavily on this livelihood

ctivity, with oyster production making up around 90 per cent households income during the 1980s and 1990s. Mandira was

hereore the ocus o eorts led by government agencies to improve

ustainable harvesting in Canania rom the late 1980s onwards,

ulminating in the establishment o Cooperostra in 1997, and the

Mandira Extractive Reserve in 2002.

he cooperative currently brings together local oyster harvesting

ommunities throughout the region, providing technical support

o promote better harvesting, production, and marketing processes.

Increasing harvests, declining local wellbeing

Interventions in the Canania estuary began in respons

commercial exploitation o local mangrove swamps, an

particular, over-harvesting o the Crassostrea brasiliana oy

Natural oyster beds in the estuary region are in the northern

o the island o Canania, extending southward along the coa

the bay o Trapand and the Canal de Ararapira, and entering

the contiguous region o Paranagua in Paran. The oyster is on

the main natural resources used by traditional communities in

municipality, both or sale and or consumption, but over-extra

had been taking place or decades, and was having a neg

impact on the livelihoods and wellbeing o the local population

Prior to the established o Cooperostra, the oyster produc

system in the region was based on amily labor. Salaries

dictated by intermediary middlemen, and the communities ha

direct contact with the markets where the oysters were being

Commercial exploitation and production o oysters was taking p

almost entirely illegally, with legal, sanitary and tax requirem

being ignored. The low income o the average producer was o

amilies to overexploit the natural oyster beds. This situation

exacerbated by neighboring communities inringing on the

territory in search o marketable natural resources, which threat

any potential or a community-based management system.

Data gathered rom the 1970s estimated an annual productio

about 300 tons o oysters rom Canania, with a monthly ave

production o 25 tons or 35,000 dozen oysters. Data rom

obtained in a survey carried out jointly with local extractors reve

an average monthly production o 76,220 dozen. This incr

in production o more than 100 per cent can be attributed t

increase in demand rom key consumer markets, low na

returns to oyster harvesters and increased exploitation in tim

low employment and economic decline.

Background and Context


5/14

55

Despite increased production, living conditions and quality o lie o

ocal people engaged in oyster resource extraction changed little.

he market supply chain that had emerged did not benet local

eople. A study o the oyster consumer market in 1988 revealed that

dozen oysters, purchased by a middleman or less than BRL 1.00,

n average, was sold or over BRL 15.00 in restaurants in the capital

ity o So Paulo and along the coast. Residents regularly pointed

ut the humiliating situation they aced in the marketing process,

when prices and quantities to be produced were dictated by

ntermediaries, a situation that takes away the communitys entire

utonomy over the production process, an autonomy normally

ighly valued by populations who deal on a daily basis with natural

ycles.

As well as poor returns to local producers, oyster harvesting was

aking place without meeting ederal quality and hygiene standards.

o ensure the sustainable reproduction and rejuvenation o

ysters, the Federal Environmental Agency in Brazil has established

uidelines and sanctions on both seasonal harvesting and catch

izes. In terms o seasonal harvesting, there is a ban on extraction o

mangrove oysters rom December to February, the main breedingeason o the species. Regarding size, there is a year-round limit

n harvesting oysters smaller than 5 cm and greater than 10 cm.

As might be anticipated, the greatest demand or oysters occurs

uring the summer months when they are in shortest supply and

when harvesting oysters rom the mangrove swamp is orbidden.

Much o the local oyster production in Canania, however, was in

ontravention o these regulations, and had no Federal Inspection

ervice (SIF) registration with the Ministry o Agriculture, which is

egally required or the marketing o products o animal origin.

Moreover, oysters outside the shell present a risk to consumer

ealth, since there is typically no hygienic control in handling them.

nitial government interventions

he lack o regulation and sustainable management o small-scale

yster harvesting in Canania was the catalyst or government

ntervention during the 1980s. The rst step in reorming the

management o the estuary was the ecological and economic zoning

the area, undertaken by the Coastal Management Program and

ompleted by So Paulos Department o the Environment in 1989.

he work showed both a critical need or conservation eorts in the

egion, and the economic potential o sustainable natural resource

management strategies controlled and run by the local population.

Among the key ecosystems agged or this use were the mangrove

wamps, particularly the one existing in the continental part o

Canania, considered the most important in the estuary region inerms o natural productivity, with an area o approximately 1,200

ectares.

Cooperostra and the Mandira Extractive Reserve

At the core o the initiative has been the creation and management

Mandira Extractive Reserve. This area is o great ecological

mportance to the estuary, as well as being central to community

economic productivity, and has been a target o local conserva

eorts to protect and ensure that productivity. The commu

carries out more stringent procedures or the harvesting o oy

than are applied in other areas, to protect the genetic diversi

endemic oyster populations. The site also acts as a laboratory w

the community can experiment with new management techni

and technologies and with the development o cultural, educat

and health actions.

There was an eight-year development period between the prop

o the reserve in 1994 and its ormal creation in December 2

During this time, the various planning processes were led

coalition o local and regional stakeholders. On the governm

side, the coordination team included experts rom So Pa

Forestry Foundation, the Institute o Fisheries, the Sao Paulo S

Land Institute Foundation (ITESP), and the Brazilian Institut

Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), w

the reserves creation was unded by the Brazilian Ministr

Environment. The Mandira community was represented by b

members o the Residents Association o the Mandira Extra

Reserve (REMA).

The early stages o the initiative included the construction o

ofce or REMA, purchase o computers, and training course

management and computer skills or REMAs members. The pr

also hired two community youths to work or Cooperostr

administration and sales and organised learning exchanges

other quilombo communities in Brazil. Support was provided

cultural activities by purchasing uniorms and instruments

Capoeira group (an Aro-Brazilian martial art that combines elem

o dance and music), lming equipment, and a CD library.

The Mandira community was at the centre o the process to esta

Cooperostra in 1997. O the 130 Mandira community memberare members o Cooperostra, although eective participatio

the business varies due to low sales outside o the summer sea

REMA is one o the chie stakeholders in the Cooperostra enterp

and the extractive reserves creation was based on the princip

local land rights. The right o quilombola communities to the

is enshrined in the Federal Constitution o 1988. In 2003, ollo

the establishment o the reserve, the community was of

recognized and is in the process o acquiring land titles to the a

Governance o the reserve was prioritized early on. The Adv

Management Board has been unctioning since early 2

chaired by IBAMA and composed o representatives o R

government agencies (ederal, state and municipal) , NGOscivil society. Regular meetings endorsed a Charter and the

and administrative steps necessary to create the reserve w

the rules o the National System o Conservation Units. In 2006

Advisory Management Board approved a usage plan, based

advice provided by the Forestry Foundation and the communi

1996. Elements o the plan were reworked through discussion

consultation held with the community. This plan was the initial

in subsequent development o a management plan.


6/14

66

A diverse partnership or sustainable development

he Cooperostra initiative as a whole is based on two undamental

rinciples. First, a ocus on ecosystem-based natural resource

management and conservation, and second, social justice, including

work opportunities or the local population and those most reliant

n the environment or their livelihoods. The organization has

ssumed a multidisciplinary approach to its work that embodies

hese principles, bringing together government agencies,ongovernmental organizations and private enterprise in a

artnership that utilizes their comparative advantages in providing

nancing, technical assistance and political support.

eyond the involvement o institutional partners, community

articipation and engagement is the most important pillar o the

roups work, a critical ingredient in ensuring that a range o local

nterests converge in a mutually benecial manner and in a way that

roduces positive environmental and social results. The community is

epresented through producer organizations, residents associations

nd cooperatives. The organization has provided targeted training to

nable cooperatives to operate a sel-management system without

he presence o external managers.

A critical local resource

The design o the project as a whole ocuses on the conserva

o the ecosystem where the oysters grow, since oysters com

the main source o income or the community, and also oc

on improving the living conditions o the extractors. The activ

combine empowerment eorts, whether in a commitmen

environmental conservation, or in decisions regarding produc

marketing and earnings o cooperative members.

Mangrove resource management is based on the prin

o sustainable development, on the innovations o Cana

extractors, and on a commitment to product quality. Am

the groups objectives are improvements to the quality o li

the local population, the development o business models

relationships that both enhance employment opportunities

improve local incomes, the conservation and sustainable use o

natural resources and prevention o overexploitation, protectio

local ecosystems and natural resources rom external preda

production o a high-quality product that has added value in

and regional markets, and demonstration (through a range o

projects) o the advantages o involving the local communit

sustainable resource management and environmental conserva


7/14

77

Key Activities and Innovations

uilding on initial interventions in the Canania estuary,

Cooperostras work has ocussed on developing a viable and

ustainable oyster harvesting enterprise. Research and mapping

onducted in the harvesting area inormed the elaboration o a

omprehensive plan or the sustainable development o the area in

order to meet the standards o land use and resources management

equired or reserves. This was supplemented by nancing rom

partners to purchase equipment (such as a motor boat and

ontainment structures or growing oysters) to improve production

processes, and the construction o the initiatives headquarters.

ubsequent activities have included the creation o the Mandira

xtractive Reserve in 2002, the ormation o its Executive Board in

005, establishment o a democratic election system (on a two-yearbasis) or Board membership, and attainment o recognition o the

uilombola territory o the Mandira community in 2003.

Organizational structure

he project also built on earlier attempts to promote oyster

quaculture led by the State Ministry o Environment, a local

Canania sher group, and the Fisheries Institute o So Paulo.

nterventions by government support sta throughout the 1990s

ad helped to oster a high level o social capital in the Mandira

ommunity that acilitated the organization o Cooperostra. Other

oyster extractor communities were then recruited and readily

dapted to the relatively high level o organization. In the case oother Canania communities, there were oten existing social and

ultural structures that acilitated the development o associations,

legal requirement or the management o extractive reserve units.

n the case o the producers in the municipality o Canania, the

ntrepreneurial nature o the initiative was also taken into account

n order to choose the best management system. The cooperative

ystem was chosen because it is a collective enterprise and because

o the possibilities this system oers regarding the participation o

ts members in decision making, in dividing responsibilities amongst

the members, and in providing social benets to their commun

The inexperience o many o the extractors regarding these t

o organization reected a need or training courses explai

the topics o associations and cooperatives. Leaders o the Oy

Producers cooperative o Canania participated in a training co

on cooperatives, with a particular ocus on the purposes o

cooperative, the specic unctions o each position, the inte

organization and inter-institutional relations. The courses trigg

a process o continuous training and expanded to include o

members o the cooperative, reaching the communities, with

aim o democratizing inormation and promoting the training

in management o the entity, given that elections occur regularly

change the leadership picture. The training process is continuwhether through the participation o the cooperative membe

routine activities where they learn by doing, or through participa

in specic courses.

Management o oyster harvesting

The primary activity o the Cooperostra is the management o

natural oyster beds. This is an alternative to basic extraction, espec

during the closed season rom December to February each ye

when producers are required to report to IBAMA the stocks tha

be marketed. In addition to enabling commercialization during

closed season, the oysters originating rom the mangrove o

management structures look better, and thereby acquire a himarket price, even rom the middlemen. This experimental mo

was deployed in the area o Mandira. The positive results

acceptance by the harvesters led to demand in other commun

Thus, in 1997, the expansion o activity to other communities i

estuary in Canania occurred. In particular, adoption o a pra

or attening oysters (engorda) has been high, and has been m

a condition or members to join the cooperative. The credibili

the producers also generated innovations, such as the replacem

o imsy temporary structures made rom bamboo poles

permanent structures placed on a concrete oundation.


8/14

88

esults o the initiatives sustainable management activities have

ncluded the placement o 142 temporary structures or attening

ysters and 11 permanent ones, or a total o 153 structures;

ncreased demand or attening structures, comprising 41 temporary

nd 65 permanent ones; increase in the number o extractors who

manage oysters; increased availability o materials or members o

he cooperative to use the nurseries; and experiments conducted on

he cultivation o oysters.

Market entry

One o the goals o the project has been the insertion o the

ooperative into the consumer market. This required the development

a strategy o consolidation o the enterprise. A business plan

was drated, examining the complexity o the elements involved

n the extraction, handling, cleaning, packing, transportation and

marketing o the oysters. The strategy o entering the market in a

ompetitive manner took into account the basic principles o the

roject: environmental conservation and improvement o living

onditions o the population o extractors. Surveying the market

o grasp the orms o marketing, pricing, competition, trends and

otential consumption was the rst stage in this process. This was

ollowed by dening the promotion strategy, brand, and logo, and

reparing written material about the product and the project. The

ierentiated aspect o the product was displayed in relation to

thers on the market, namely its highly hygienic product quality,

nd its sustainable origins. Financing rom the Brazilian Biodiversity

und (FUNBIO) was used to drat and implement the Cooperostra

usiness Plan.

his business plan set prices or the product, based on a survey o

irect and indirect costs, and established salaries or harvesters,

epresenting on average a 100 per cent increase on their previous

arnings. Other eatures included the development o a data bankoncerning the market and direct mailings to potential customers;

ening the elements o product promotion; selecting packaging

or distribution; marketing the product on the coast o So Paulo;

nd production o extensive promotional material (banners,

rochures, yers, business cards, signs and banners.) The plan also

ncouraged decreased selling o shelled oysters to middlemen by

ooperative members.

Meeting hygiene standards

he need to clean oysters in order to make the nished product t

or consumption was raised in the rst stage o the project. The initial

ption was to build a purication plant in the district itsel. Studieso decide on its structure, in compliance with the legal standards o

onstruction and operation, however, pointed to the ineasibility o

ts location on the Reserve, because it would only serve the Mandira

ommunity. Construction in a more accessible location would

enet other producers in the municipality.

he cleaning o the oysters, besides ensuring a desirable product

rom a sanitary point o view, enhances the product in the market,

eading to local added value. The construction o the puriying

tation, with a large part o it run cooperatively by the members,

was made possible by unding rom a number o sources, inclu

the Brazilian Ministry o Environment and the International

or Reconstruction and Development, the Margaret Mee Bota

Foundation, and World Vision. The smooth operation o the she

puriying station is crucially important to the success o the pro

because, besides being the main structure administered by

cooperative, it is where quality control o the product takes p

which is a basic requirement or market competitiveness.

The construction o the puriying station gave the cooperative

capacity to clean roughly 40,000 dozen oysters per month,

established standard operating procedures or shellsh purica

A secondary process involved compiling the hygienic-san

prole o areas suitable or oyster arming, based on obtai

laboratory analyses o water rom the estuary and rom

production o oysters. An agreement was signed with the Regi

Registration Laboratory (Vale do Ribeira) o the State Secreta

Health to conduct periodic microbiological testing o water

o oyster production at the puriying station, while the initia

also established a ramework or sanitary monitoring o the wa

owing into the main areas where oysters are collected. Fina

series o workshops were held bringing together state departm

responsible or agriculture, sheries, health, sanitation, and bus

to improve monitoring processes.

Environmental certifcation

Obtaining environmental certication or the oyster harves

and purication process was necessary to complement

project objective o preserving the environment and ensu

the sustainable management and regeneration o the

oyster population. It was agreed that consumers are increas

concerned with the negative impacts o production processes,

that gaining a green seal o approval would increase demand oproduct. This environmental certication involved two stages

study o the natural stocks o Crassotrea brasiliana oysters, in o

to obtain evidence o the compatibility o the production o oy

rom Canania with the existing stocks in mangrove swamp a

and ii) establishment o environmental certication parameter

the sustainable production o oysters, which did not yet exis

consultation with the Marine Stewardship Council, the evalua

stated that certication rom this agency would be impo

or Cooperostra or selling to international markets, a long-

goal o the project. While this has not yet been realised, surve

the natural production o oysters in Canania estuary have b

conducted to determine the maximum extraction capacity, and

group continues to work on improving the product or sale oninternational market.

Governance o the initiative

Cooperostra has adopted an innovative governance mo

whereby community members participate in all stages o dec

making, rom needs assessment to planning, implementation

accountability. Community leadership is supplemented by part

that provide expert help where needed. This represents a cha

rom the status quo, to a project o the community, designe


9/14

9

he community, on the basis o its needs and expectations, with

he support o experts. The organization has also been particularly

dept at undraising to carry out specic actions and phases o the

roject. In all cases, the community identied what was needed and

ut in bids or unding with a range o stakeholders.

nnovations in oyster management and purifcation

he nature o the initiatives oyster management is also an innovation.n the 1970s, researchers carried out experiments on the cultivation

native oysters rom seed in the estuary o Canania. The initiative

ailed to gain traction or the support o extractors. In the mid-1990s

when the current initiative began, a choice was made to introduce

he management o oysters instead. This involves the use o articial

attening beds installed in the intertidal zone (coroa or baixio) in

reas o sandy sediment. Native oysters are initially taken rom wild

tocks. Collectors head out at low tide to reach the oysters, which are

ttached to the roots o the trees in the mangroves. They are then

laced in wooden structures installed in the sand banks or our to

ix months. When the tide is high the oysters are covered, the shells

re open and the oysters eed; when the tide is low, the oysters are

ncovered. During this time they are attened to a commercial size

approximately 8 cm. The process o attening helps the oysters

o become plump and succulent and increases their chance o

eproducing. The oysters contain almost no at, as the reserves they

uild up are mainly glycogen, which is a carbohydrate. Fattening

ysters reduces the need to collect other oysters and is a requisite

or participating in the cooperative.

The introduction o this technology came about ater a n

assessment was carried out among extractors by the So P

Forestry Foundation in 1994, seeking to improve productivity

add value to the product. The experimental module was deplo

in the area o Mandira. Initially, the structures were temporary, u

bamboo poles with a duration o one harvesting cycle. The appr

has been so successul that permanent structures, which are pl

on a concrete base, have been built and are sustaining this activ

While the waters o the Estuary o Canania are o exce

quality, the purication process is required to obtain license

commercialization. On the basis o research carried out by pro

specialists, purication using ultraviolet light was selected as

best model. The puriying station oversees the ollowing pro

the oysters collected by extractors are cleaned o other organi

selected, sorted, and packed in perorated plastic boxes, e

dozen per box. They are then placed in tanks with continuo

renewed water sterilized by an ultraviolet system. The treatm

lasts rom two to six hours or each batch o oysters, dependin

water conditions. Based on their own observations o the proc

cooperative members have also made some adjustments. Mem

observed how boxes were placed on the oor, at the bottom o

tank. The problem was that in the ltering process, the oysters e

debris, which was causing the puried or cleaned oysters to h

contact with the debris. To solve the problem, the members cre

a small support system or the boxes, made rom PVC pipes, ab

10 cm high, which creates a distance between the boxes and

oor.


10/14

10

Impacts

BIODIVERSITY IMPACTS

Prior to the project, oysters were removed rom the mangrove swamp

nd immediately sold. The daily output was then sold to middlemen,

who oten set unreasonably low prices. With the introduction o

attening nurseries, the oysters remain in the mangrove swamp until

he time o sale, which contributes to their reproduction in their

natural habitat. The small oysters that become stuck onto larger

ones (called head) had no use prior to the project. Through proper

management, these small oysters are now detached rom the larger

oysters and remain in the nursery until they reach the correct size

or sale. In addition to the attening nurseries, the initiative has

lso encouraged the practice o bottom-diving, in which oystersre harvested rom the estuary oor rather than rom its mangrove

orests.

Table 1 shows the adoption o the two principal practices or

mproving sustainability o oyster populations (attening and

bottom diving) across six communities in 2007.

During 2007, 75,000 dozen oysters, corresponding to 40 per cent

o the total production o Canania, were managed in attening

nurseries. However, considering that the production o oysters

n the box is partly intended or attening in nurseries, one can

estimate that this gure is higher. With respect to producer gro

the Mandira group was the most active in the practice o atte

in nurseries, accounting or about 50 per cent o attening prac

throughout the municipality.

SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS

There has been a clear increase in the incomes o cooper

members. These innovative techniques o managing oysters in

natural habitat, together with well-inormed marketing strate

have served to improve local livelihoods. The initiative has achi

an improvement in the quality o lie o the regions tradit

extractors as a result o the payment o air prices or their proExtractors have gained a price increase, on average, o about 10

cent. They have also successully diversied their incomes as a r

o training in a range o activities. Women and youth have

heavily engaged in the project. There is now greater comm

access to goods and services, particularly to health services.

Beyond the economic benets, however, is the act that o

extractors, who prior to the project were socially marginalised,

been recognized as workers and the status o their occupation

been raised. The personal and community empowerment resu

rom this has inspired similar initiatives and urther collective ac

Table 1: Adoption of fattening and bottom-diving practices (%) , 2007

Locaon Management using faening nurseries Extracon by boom-diving

Sos 87 26

Acara 47 27

Porto Cubato 15 -

Itapitangui 85 15

So Paulo Bagre 75 0

Mandira 62 -

Average 63.9 12.4

ource: Cooperostra.


11/14

Empowerment o women and youth

One such activity has been around womens groups and

entrepreneurship. The women o Mandira typically worked in

emoving oysters rom their shells, which was an illegal activity.

Ater this practice was ended by the beginning o the Cooperostra

nitiative, local women demanded that part o an early unding

application be earmarked or the purchase o sewing machines.

The initial idea was or the women to get training to sew or theiramilies. Ater the rst machines were bought, the women received

rained and identied a niche or income generation. They obtained

a donation o industrial machines and began to sew commercially,

pecializing in clothing or beekeepers. This womens group

diversied its production by recruiting artisans who used ancestral

echniques or making baskets and who created new items using

oyster shells. Today, this initiative sells clothing (including extractive

eserve t-shirts), decorations and ornaments, purses, and wooden

canoes, among other items, to generate an additional source o

evenue or their amilies.

Through the oyster extraction project, young people have also

become involved, laying the groundwork or a new generation oustainability. Many youths have been trained and employed as

environmental monitors.

Diversiying income sources

The initiative has also expanded into ecotourism, oering visitors

he chance to learn about the history and culture o the quilombolas,

he Mandira community, and the estuarys oyster-harvesting

communities. This initiative is integrated with environmental

education, where groups o students are given lectures about the

community and the project, are given a tour o the oyster arms, and

are provided with a cultural experience where they are shown theuins o stone houses constructed in the era o slavery and sambaqui,

piles o mollusc shells rom the pre-Cabral era.

POLICY IMPACTS

Cooperostra has participated politically in social and environmental

movements at dierent levels. At the municipal level, their

epresentatives participated in the Canania Network, a collective o

organizations created in 2004, which aims to strengthen community

nitiatives and create a network o alternatives or local, sustainable

and integrated development. With 23 organizations and groups,

he network supports direct and indirect actions, as well as projects

and programs in dierent areas: culture, community strengthening,ustainable management o natural resources and environmental

education.

At the regional level, the community is represented by the

Coordinating Team or Black Communities (EACONE), which works to

deend the rights o quilombolas. The community also participates

n the Movement o People Threatened by Dams, an organization

ounded in 1991 by people threatened by the dams o the Vale do

Ribeira; the group organizes resistance against the construction o

dams on the Ribeira do Iguape River in the states o So Paulo and

Paran. This is a national movement that is present in 19 Braz

states and questions the energy model implemented in B

Through these organizations, the community has participate

seminars to prepare the Plan o Sustainable Territorial Developm

o the Vale do Ribeira.

At the municipal level, although public services are still not adeq

to meet the needs o community residents, there has bee

improvement compared to the period prior to the project. Arrom recognition o the work o the oyster producers o Cana

and the visibility that the project has achieved, basic he

transportation and education services have improved.

At the ederal level, the community has a designated seat in

National Council o the Biosphere Reserve o the Atlantic Fo

representing the residents o south-eastern Brazil.

The project began during the re-democratization o the cou

Since then, numerous communities have acquired greater pol

expression and voice. The Mandira community joined many o

communities and, to some extent, participates in changes inhe

to the democratic process. The recognition o the eectivenethe project has contributed to the creation o other conserva

nits o sustainable use in the estuary lagoon complex o Cana

In February 2006, a state law established the Extractive Reserv

Taquari and Tumba Island, as well as the Sustainable Developm

Reserve o Itapanhoapima. All are in areas used by extracto

oysters and o other mangrove swamp resources, including t

linked to the project.

11


12/14

12

Sustainability and Replication

SUSTAINABILITYhe longevity and success o the initiative are based on its cultural,

ocial, ethical, ecological, political, economic and territorial

ustainability. The community understands sustainability as a

ontinuous process and although there have been improvements

n the living conditions o local people, production techniques with

ess impact on the environment have been introduced, and sanitary

ealth measures have contributed to providing a healthier product,

much work remains to be done.

Community participation and capacity building have been essential

omponents o the projects sustainability. The initiative also creditsn expansion o knowledge, the social inclusion o women and

outh, nancial support rom partners and other stakeholders,

trategic partnership, and technical and political support rom

arious institutions as contributing success actors.

A study on extraction in the municipality ound that impacts on

ncome were seen most clearly in the community o Mandira,

he most active community in the project. Likewise, the largest

umber o oyster attening nurseries is concentrated there. Mandira

xtractors are the main suppliers o Cooperostra, and they also work

n marketing the oysters. Some extractors rom other communities

re Cooperative members, but their inclusion is, in large part, as

uppliers. There is a need to strengthen the organization o theooperatives members, making equitable the participation o all.

he expansion o the project to other communities would bring

roader social and environmental benets.

REPLICATION

esides training related to activities such as management,

dministration, cooperatives, associations, environmental

monitoring, and inormation technology, exchanges with other

ommunities have become part o the cooperatives training process.

Sharing experiences with other projects occurs through welco

visitors and through international learning exchanges undert

by community members. For instance, Cooperostra is part o

international Slow Food network that promotes traditional, loc

sourced cuisine, having participated in exhibitions sponsored by

entity in Italy. The cooperative also hosted participants o the Ei

Conerence o the Parties (COP 8) to the Convention on Biolo

Diversity, held in Curitiba in 2006, through its relationship with

UNDP Equator Initiative.

The use o television and print media has been a key strategy

or disseminating inormation about the project. Since its incep

there has been substantial media interest in the project, includintelevision programmes, two o which aired on the largest statio

the country. The group has also gained exposure in print media

articles in magazines, six o which with a national circulation; aro

30 newspaper articles, 13 o them in newspapers with a nat

circulation; and several urther news stories have reported

involvement o Cooperostra with the Equator Initiative in partic

Network development

There has been an ongoing exchange o experiences

communities rom various regions o Brazil, at dierent stag

implementation o their projects. Coastal communities, suc

Paraty rom Rio de Janeiro, have visited Mandira to learn about oyster management system. Other visitors have been intereste

the cooperatives governance system. Events such as social econ

airs also promote collaboration between projects, while Cooper

and Mandira are part o So Paulos school eld trip circui

environmental studies. There has been participation by produce

seminars and meetings on issues relating to the project. At the

level, producers who are not tied to Cooperostra have also be

to use the management techniques adopted and disseminate

the cooperative, illustrating the transer o its model and inu

throughout coastal communities.


13/14

1313

PARTNERS

Residents Association o the Extractive Reserve o Mandira

District (REMA): community organization and experimentation

with management techniques

Forestry Foundation o the State o So Paulo: provides technical

support or the design o projects, publicity and political and

nancial supportFisheries Institute: undertakes research on the natural stock

o oysters in the mangrove swamp and on management

techniques

Nucleus o Support o Research on Populations in Humid Areas

in Brazil: provides social research and political and nancial

support

C. E. Gaia Ambiental (Gaia Environmental): provides technical

support

Margaret Mee Botany Foundation: provides nancial

administrative support

Pastoral Commission or Fisheries: provides political suppo

Institute Adolo Lutz: provides quality control o pro

(including laboratory analysis)

Ministry o the Environment: provides nancial support Municipal Government o the Seaside Resort o Cana

donated land or the construction o the purication statio

Shell Brasil: provides nancial support

World Vision: provides nancial support

Brazilian Fund or Biodiversity (FUNBIO): nanced the de

and implementation o Cooperostras business plan

There is a need to provide special treatment to those who have not attained equality smal

scale producers should have access to government funding, tax exemptions and technical suppo

as the environmental, social and economic sustainability of local communities contributes to th

sustainability of the planet.

Wanda Maldonado, Forestry Foundation of the State of So Paulo


14/14

Click the thumbnails below to read more case studies like this:

Equator Initiative

Environment and Energy GroupUnited Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

304 East 45th Street, 6th Floor

New York, NY 10017

Tel: +1 646 781 4023

www.equatorinitiative.org

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UNs global development network, advocating or change and

necting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better lie.

The Equator Initiative brings together the United Nations, governments, civil society, businesses and grassroots organizati

o recognize and advance local sustainable development solutions or people, nature and resilient communities.

2012 by Equator Initiative

All rights reserved

FURTHER REFERENCE

Machado, I.C., A Portrait o extraction: sustainability in the commercial exploitation o the mangrove oyster in Canania (Doctoral Th

Federal University o Sao Carlos), 2009.

Medeiros, D. 2006. Poverty Alleviation and Biodiversity Conservation in Rural Brazil: A Case Study o the Canania Oyster Producer

operative. Masters thesis, University o Manitoba. http://umanitoba.ca/institutes/natural_resources/canadaresearchchair/thesis/

deiros%20masters%20thesis%202006.pd
http://umanitoba.ca/institutes/natural_resources/canadaresearchchair/thesis/dmedeiros%20masters%20thesis%202006.pdfhttp://umanitoba.ca/institutes/natural_resources/canadaresearchchair/thesis/dmedeiros%20masters%20thesis%202006.pdfhttp://umanitoba.ca/institutes/natural_resources/canadaresearchchair/thesis/dmedeiros%20masters%20thesis%202006.pdfhttp://umanitoba.ca/institutes/natural_resources/canadaresearchchair/thesis/dmedeiros%20masters%20thesis%202006.pdfhttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/com_winners/casestudy/case_1348163749.pdfhttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/com_winners/casestudy/case_1348150773.pdfhttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/com_winners/casestudy/case_1348150898.pdf

case studies undp: oyster producers' cooperative of cananeia, brazil

Documents